Procrastination & A Spiritual Revelation
Procrastination. Does anyone else struggle with this? Please tell me I’m not alone.
A little more than two years ago, I lost one of those tiny pins that help hold my glasses together. I tend to not take care of things I need very quickly… this means my husband jury rigged a solution – he wound a paper clip up to hook it all together. It was discreet, you couldn’t see the fix unless you were looking for it, but it was also not as adequate as getting the frames fixed correctly.
Because of this, the lens on that side was continually popping out. If I jostled the glasses too much, held them wrong, any little thing they’d fall apart. The frames were fixed sort of, but because the frames weren’t as tight around the lens as they should have been, I was looking through a skewed lens all the time.
And remember, these glasses are how I see the world. I’m almost legally blind without those glasses. They’re on my face from the moment I wake up each morning, until the moment I get into bed each night.
Procrastination
You who are more organized than I am will probably ask why I didn’t just go get them fixed a lot sooner. Well, a couple things – I knew I needed new frames anyway, so I was sort of holding off, thinking that I was just going to replace these, and didn’t have time to actually bother fixing them anyway. And second, like I said earlier, life gets in the way and the things I need sort of get set aside because I can make do with what I have … then a week turns into two months, two months turns into a year, and suddenly two years have gone by.

Then, a few weeks ago, my husband ordered a glasses repair kit. He handed it to me when it came in the mail – I saw the lens cleaning cloth, I saw a couple tools. I didn’t look too hard – I was busy – so I stuck it in my purse, and promptly forgot about it. My life can be busy. I figured I’d look at it later, but it couldn’t really help the situation with my current pair of glasses anyway – or so I thought.
Time For Change
This Sunday, I was digging around in my purse and found that little kit. For some reason, I finally looked at it that day. I opened the case and saw what it really contained. It held a lens cloth, two little screwdrivers, and included there, plain as day, was a little baggie containing several new nose piece pads, and 4 or 5 of those tiny little pins – the same ones I was missing from my glasses.
So, this morning I sat down and fixed them. It only took a minute or two. The hardest part was undoing the jury-rigging, and making sure I didn’t break the frames completely while trying to take that paperclip out.
Now, amazingly, these glasses sit on my face the way they’re supposed to now. The lens is straight – not waiting to fall out at a moment’s notice. The frames are still old, and I may exchange them for a new pair, but I’ll be taking those pins out and putting them in my kit when I do.
Immediately, I saw how that kit represented the way I treat my spiritual life too often.
A Spiritual Revelation
It’s right there, God’s Word… a relationship with Jesus Christ. But so often I make do with what I have. Life gets busy doing good things, but I don’t take time to take care of what I need in order to see straight.
I need the spiritual walk with God just as much (more really) as I need those glasses. Yet without proper maintenance, that spiritual walk slips and malfunctions, or just doesn’t sit on my outlook as well as it should.
Without proper maintenance our spiritual life will fall into disrepair… Click To TweetRepairing the glasses didn’t take a specialist. It didn’t take much time. Just a few quick moments, the right screwdriver, and the right pin to hold the frames together the way they were designed to function.
I suppose it’s the same with my spiritual life, too, right? Just the right tools, and a few moments to put things right with God… to get His perspective back on my face, to keep things from slipping around where they weren’t supposed to be. To make sure my relationship with God is functioning the way it’s been designed to function.
Reflecting
Sometimes I see things in my life, and I’m afraid to tackle them because I think they’re too huge. That God can’t help me because my issue is too great. I think God can’t fix me because I’m too broken. God won’t heal me because it’ll take too much time.
I think it’s more like those glasses. I just need to sit and do some maintenance, and it’s not going to take nearly as much time as I’m afraid it will. God already has all the right tools, and He’s a master Fixer. Maybe it seems too simplistic? But God is bigger than even our biggest problems.
What About You?
Have you ever had times when you’ve thought something was too big, but then God came along and healed? Have you ever been surprised by God? Share with us in the comments below.
Procrastination is one of my biggest struggles! Ugh. I can’t even.
I know, it’s very tempting, isn’t it?
I am not a procrastinator at all, I like things to get done ahead of time, when I was in school I was a procrastinator though
It’s a good point to make too, that sometimes we have seasons when procrastination is something we deal with, and other seasons when we don’t deal with it. 🙂 Thank you.
I have a problem with procrastination. I put off writing this comment. I’m working on making a list and following through.
Lists are good – I find that’s about the most helpful thing for me to do, as well.
If we just take the time to sit down and do it right away, our lives would work more smoothly. I try to get myself to do one thing I don’t want to do first in the day, and I feel so much better the whole rest of the day because I got that thing done, even if it only took less than 5 minutes, like repairing your glasses!
You’re right, good reminder.
My struggle is that I put off taking time to put things off! It seems like I get so busy that the one thing I procrastinate on is taking time to rest, one of the most important things of all.
oh God has certainly been dealing with me about that!
Amen, me too
I think one reason it is so difficult is because it is an act of literal spiritual warfare to put our lives aside for prayer and worship. The enemy has a vested interest in distracting us.
You’re right, that’s very true. The Devil wants to keep us distracted.
Procrastination is such a battle!! But I love how you tied that physical situation to the spiritual. I have actually been awaiting buying new frames myself because mine keep breaking and are being held together with clean nail polish at the moment so I identify completely 😉
It’s always nice to know we aren’t alone, isn’t it? 😀
Amen! God is bigger than even our biggest problems. We just have to take our problems to Him.
I’m coming to realize that much of my depression and anxiety is due to my procrastination and laziness. I’m confessing my sin and asking God to help me overcome my slothful habits. It feels like a huge mountain to climb. Only God can help me do this.